Sydney is the new bar capital of Australia. Yes that’s right folks, after more than 13 years of publishing this humble little magazine and always referring to Melbourne as the city with the best bars I now feel it only fair to give credit where credit is due. This is only my opinion but Sydney has played poor neighbour in this department for such a long time that its time to acknowledge the amazing turnaround the city has taken, due largely to the success of small bar-friendly liquor laws, great new and innovative bar operators plus red hot bartending talent that is no longer tempted to move abroad in the numbers we saw last decade. Plus, add to that the fact many influential international and interstate bar and nightclub personalities have decided to call Sydney home. Don’t get me wrong, I love Melbourne and its bars and have championed Melbourne hard for over a decade. I have also stated both in my publications and elsewhere that other cities (including Sydney) didn’t come close to Melbourne’s cosmopolitan bar culture. So to all my friends (or former friends) down south – suck it up and deal with it as ‘times are changing’ and it’s Sydney’s time to shine. Remember, it just all adds up to some healthy inter-state rivalry and a better industry to be part of nationwide.
Finally as you read this I should be in Mexico with troublemakers Phil Bayly and Tom Estes visiting distilleries and dive bars plus attending the launch of industry legend Mr Julio Bermejo’s very own Tequila distillery. It will be my first visit to Mexico and to say
I’m excited is an understatement. I plan to come back with a few good stories plus I will post a few regular updates on Facebook and Twitter about my adventures, so stay tuned.
Cheers,
David
